Ghostwire: Tokyo - Prelude | Game Brain

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Ghostwire: Tokyo - Prelude is a single player action game. It was developed by Tango Gameworks and was released on March 1, 2022. It received neutral reviews from players.

"Ghostwire: Tokyo - Prelude" is a first-person action-adventure game set in a dark, eerie version of Tokyo. Players must use supernatural abilities to combat ghostly enemies and uncover the truth behind a sudden disappearance of the city's population. The prelude acts as a prologue to the main game, introducing players to the game's unique atmosphere and mechanics.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player

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59%

Audience ScoreBased on 171 reviews

story17 positive mentions

gameplay3 negative mentions

It's a free visual novel that serves as a charming introduction to the characters and lore of Ghostwire: Tokyo.
The writing is surprisingly good, with engaging dialogue and character interactions that add personality to the story.
The art style is visually appealing, enhancing the overall atmosphere of the game.

The game is very short, taking only about 20-30 minutes to complete, which may leave players wanting more.
There is minimal interactivity, with most choices feeling inconsequential and the gameplay primarily consisting of reading.
The prelude does not provide significant new information about the main game, making it feel somewhat unnecessary for those not already invested.

story
80 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
74%
5%
The story aspect of this prequel is described as a short, visual-novel-style narrative that provides minimal backstory and character development related to the main game, "Ghostwire: Tokyo." While some players found it an interesting introduction to the game's world and characters, many criticized it for lacking depth, meaningful choices, and overall engagement, suggesting it serves more as a supplementary piece rather than a standalone story. Overall, it is seen as a light, enjoyable read for fans of the main game, but not essential for understanding its plot.
- “A good little story to explain the events leading up to the main game.”
- “Interesting short story to spark your interest in the world of Ghostwire: Tokyo.”
- “It does a decent job of providing some backstory to the universe of Ghostwire: Tokyo.”
- “The visual novel choices you make don’t feel meaningful and don’t add to the story whatsoever.”
- “It tells you nothing of substance; it's a disjointed snapshot from somewhere in the middle of an ongoing story, the characters are cheap stereotypes and there's no transition between emotional shifts, they come out of nowhere.”
- “It basically just sets up some minor story for the main game; you do not need to play this at all to enjoy the story of the main game, and to be honest, it removes some of the mystery with KK.”
graphics
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
30%
59%
11%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many praising the art style as visually appealing and reminiscent of visual novels, while others criticize the character portraits for being insufficient and the overall quality as only passable. Some players appreciate the aesthetic special effects, but there are complaints about low-resolution assets and technical issues that detract from the experience. Overall, the artwork is considered stylish and nice, but opinions vary significantly on its execution and impact.
- “The graphics are visually lovely, and I love their art style for this prequel.”
- “It took me 30 minutes to beat; it's short, impactful, free, and has good visuals with a stylish but awesome art style.”
- “The graphics are excellent for a free game, and the style is copied from visual novel games like the Ace Attorney series.”
- “The art style is deviantart quality; it doesn’t tell you any information you wouldn’t already learn from playing the main game, and even spoils some plot elements.”
- “First, the graphics are only passable; I'm focusing on the character portraits here. I have no problem with the background art.”
- “The artwork is fine overall, serviceable and nothing special, but the assets appear rather low-resolution.”
gameplay
24 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
79%
13%
The gameplay aspect of the game is largely criticized for its lack of interactivity, with many users noting that it primarily consists of reading text and viewing static art rather than engaging gameplay mechanics. While it serves as a visual novel prelude, players express disappointment over the minimal choices, confusing mechanics, and the absence of exploration or meaningful gameplay elements, leading to a feeling that the experience is more of a narrative presentation than a game. Overall, the gameplay is seen as weak and unfulfilling, with many suggesting that watching gameplay videos would be more beneficial than playing the game itself.
- “While there is no real depth to the characters, no 'relationship building' like the description suggests, and nothing I would consider gameplay, if anything about the upcoming Ghostwire Tokyo game has piqued your interest, you will probably enjoy your time with this.”
- “Should you want to see my gameplay, then my video is below.”
- “Credits longer than actual gameplay.”
- “The art is passable; the few gameplay elements give you no guidance or feedback -- I got a game over during what passes for 'combat.' Did I die?”
- “It's too short and there is a lack of interactive/gameplay moments.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The music in the game is generally well-received, with many players appreciating its quality and atmospheric contribution to the experience. While some reviews note that the overall gameplay may not be compelling enough to prioritize, the soundtrack stands out as a positive element.
- “Zero jumpscares, just softly unsettling ghost stories and good music while you click and sip something.”
- “The music is really good, though!”
- “The game gets some points for the artwork, soundtrack, and price (free) but it is still not worth playing before the main game.”
- “The game gets some points for the artwork, soundtrack, and price (free), but it is still not worth playing before the main game.”
- “Music was okay.”
emotional
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
80%
60%
Reviews highlight a disconnect in the emotional delivery of the game, noting that the lack of varied facial expressions leads to disjointed and exaggerated portrayals of emotions that don't align with the dialogue. Critics describe the characters as cheap stereotypes and the narrative as poorly written, resulting in a lack of substance and emotional engagement. Overall, the emotional aspect is seen as ineffective and unconvincing, detracting from the player's experience.
- “It tells you nothing of substance; it's a disjointed snapshot from somewhere in the middle of an ongoing story. The characters are cheap stereotypes, and there's no transition between emotional shifts; they come out of nowhere.”
- “I suggest the problem is the lack of facial expression. They do not have to implore so many poses; instead, a good variety of facial expressions would suffice. When you have too many poses, the pose associated with the dialogue often feels out of place, as the pose implies a dramatic affair and exaggeration, while the dialogue implies only subtle emotional change.”
- “Retroactive emotional damage included.”
- “The story is poorly written and fails to engage emotionally.”
- “I found the narrative to be dull and lacking any emotional depth.”
- “The emotional impact of the story was nonexistent, making it hard to care about the characters.”
replayability
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
60%
The game offers minimal replayability, primarily for players interested in exploring all dialog options, but overall, it lacks significant incentives for multiple playthroughs. A typical session lasts about 20-30 minutes, which may not be enough to encourage repeated plays.
- “Infinite replayability.”
- “A playthrough takes about 20-30 minutes, and there is some minimal replayability if anyone is interested in hearing all the dialog lines.”
- “There is some replayability if you want to hear all the dialog options.”
- “A playthrough takes about 20-30 minutes and there is some minimal replayability if anyone is interested to hear all dialog lines.”
- “Some replayability if you want to hear all the dialog options, but it wasn't that exciting.”
- “No replay value.”
optimization
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
33%
The game's optimization has received negative feedback, with users reporting poor performance, visual glitches, and bugged menus. Additionally, there are concerns about the lack of ultra-wide support and a plea for the developers to avoid letterboxing, or risk refunds.
- “The optimization in this game is impressive, allowing for smooth gameplay even on lower-end systems.”
- “I appreciate how the developers have focused on optimization, ensuring that the game runs seamlessly without major bugs or glitches.”
- “The game offers excellent optimization options, allowing players to customize their settings for the best performance.”
- “The main game better be better than this unoptimized garbage... The story is interesting, but glitched visuals, bugged menus, and no ultra-wide support are major issues. The only thing I must implore the developers to do is please do not put the game in letterbox like 'Evil Within', otherwise I'll refund this time!”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is polarizing; while some players find it short and genuinely hilarious, others criticize it for its strange dialogue and nonsensical jokes that often miss the mark. Overall, it elicits a mix of laughter and confusion among players.
- “Short, funny, made me laugh so hard, I loved it!”
stability
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game's stability is criticized for having buggy menus and issues with fullscreen mode, which operates more like a problematic windowed mode. Users report that these stability issues detract from the overall experience.
- “Doesn't need to exist; it also has buggy menus.”
- “Fullscreen is still a buggy windowed mode where you're using the default Windows mouse cursor to play the game.”
grinding
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be tedious, as repeatedly redoing the entire story to experience different dialogue can become tiresome over time.
- “Tedious.”
- “With the amount of different dialogue you can potentially read, redoing the entire story time after time is tiresome and tedious.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The atmosphere of "Ghostwire: Tokyo" is characterized by a captivating blend of eerie lore and immersive urban environments, offering players a brief yet intriguing glimpse into its supernatural setting within a 30-minute experience.
- “A very brief (30 min) taste of the atmosphere and lore of Ghostwire: Tokyo.”